Google is Bidding Farewell to Right Rail Ads (Right Side) on Desktop Searches

The End Of Right Rail Ads on Google

Lookout, a major change has hit desktops across the globe (although most of you have likely seen it in action already!): Google has gotten rid of all paid ads along the right rail of desktop searches. The result? A decrease in the number of ads shows on a results page, which, in the end, has some marketers fearing that this will likely drive up costs for advertisers.

In addition to this change, Google also announced it’ll begin to show 4 ads at the top of search results (an increase from 3), for what they deem as high value search terms (like “Hotels in Boston”).

“We’ve been testing this layout for a long time, so some people might see it on a very small number of commercial queries,” Google told Ad Age in a statement. “We’ll continue to make tweaks, but this is designed for highly commercial queries where the layout is able to provide more relevant results for people searching and better performance for advertisers.”

Here’s a rundown of what you can expect to see starting as of, well, NOW:

3 text ads will show at the bottom of SERPs

4 text ads (rather than 3) will be shown in the mainline area above organic listings for highly commercial queries

The total number of text ads on a SERP will go from as many as 11 to – at most – 7

So, Why Might This Change Drive Up Costs For Advertisers?

Many people are speculating that CPCs are going to skyrocket as a result of this major shift, but it’s likely too soon to tell. There are a few things to consider, namely, will advertisers be willing to bid the same for bottom-of-the-page ads as they were for those precious right-rail ads?

Why Might PPC Marketers Benefit From This?

One thing to keep in mind is that the new layout only affects desktops, which now account for less than half of all searches. But, with this change, all ads can now use call-out extensions, sitelink extensions, location extensions and more, which previously were only of benefit to top-of-page ads.

Another outcome of the rollout – thus far – has been the appearance of more native ads. That can become a huge asset to advertisers as searchers are beginning to have a hard time discerning between organic and paid results.

Is It Time To Panic?

We admit that this is a MAJOR change in Google advertising. With all big changes, there are plenty of people who are ready to panic. But the reality is with good know-how and support, you’ll get through this shift, and, perhaps, will be better for it.

The OperationROI team has already used existing data – since the rollout – to analyze what’s working for clients, and what’s not. This has put us in position to design a forward-thinking strategy designed to help clients of all industries and sectors to come away unscathed from this change.

Want proof? Try us on for size. Contact our team today at 1-888-277-5429 or fill out our contact form to learn more about how we can help you leverage this desktop search query change to your benefit.